ACLU moves to reopen Pennsylvania's competency-treatment settlement, saying more than 260 defendants are stuck in jails
WHYY reported that the ACLU of Pennsylvania is reviving a lawsuit it had settled with the state Department of Human Services, which requires treatment for people declared incompetent to stand trial. The group's legal director said more than 260 such defendants were waiting in county jails, nearly 50 more than when the settlement was reached, and that some had waited more than two years for a bed. The article says federal courts have set a week as the longest such defendants may sit in jail before treatment.
The department declined to discuss the litigation but said it had taken steps to cut wait times, among them a $17.6 million outlay for roughly 150 new treatment slots. The ACLU argued that was not enough and that the state did not know why more seriously ill people were arriving in jail even as capacity grew. It also said many of these defendants land in solitary confinement, which can make their condition worse.
In its filing the group sought a court order for 100 new beds within six months and for outside consultants to examine why the waits continue.
Source: Claiming continued treatment delays for mentally ill defendants, ACLU takes Pa. back to court — WHYY
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